A Walk - Dow Crag and Coniston Old Man with Graham Hogg
11 miles (17.5km) with 3400ft (1030m) Total Ascent
Today affords us the opportunity for a fine high level ridge walk across the Coniston Fells (provided we are fortunate enough to avoid an encounter with prevailing south westerly gale force winds on Dow Crag - some of you may remember this experience from a previous A walk with this club!).
From Torver we will climb to join the Walna Scar Road and follow this to Brown Pike and Buck Pike before reaching the summit of Dow Crag (778m).
From here a quick descent to Goats Hawse is followed by an immediate climb up to Coniston Old Man at 803m. Weather permitting, we will walk the ridge north to Swirl How, descend the Prison Band and return to Coniston via Levers Water and the Coppermines Valley.
B+ Walk - Blawith Fells with Meriel Nutter
11 miles (17.7km) with 1000ft (305m) Total Ascent
Leave the coach at Torver. Take a minor road south westerly for about 2 miles to Haveriggholme at the road end. The terrain is now a mixture of good paths and rough, potentially boggy areas. Continue south on a track taking the left fork onto a bridleway to DryHaw Wood. Just after fording a small stream go left onto a path south east for a short distance continuing right onto another bridleway.
Just before another ford take a path cut through the bracken ascending to the col between Coulter Stone and Wool Knott then descending to Beacon Tarn, watch out for wild swimmers! Turn North alongside the tarn onto the Cumbria way which we follow all the way to the lake and into Coniston.
B Walk - Walna Scar Road with Stuart Arnold
8 miles (12.9km) with 1150ft (362m) Total Ascent
From the car park in Coniston we make a slow leisurely ascent up Church Beck towards Crowberry Haws. We then take the path between Stubthwaite Crag and the Bell to Walna Scar Road, which we follow for about a mile.
On leaving Walna Scar Road we make a gradual descent alongside Torver Beck via some disused quarries to Crook. After crossing the A593 we walk towards Brackenbarrow Farm and then through Torver Common Wood to Hoathwaite Landing to join the Cumbria way and make our way back to Coniston along the side of the lake.
C Walk - Torver and Back with Judith Kirby
Starting from Coniston we make our way to Haws Bank on the A593. From this point we break off south west and follow well marked tracks that take us gradually up hill towards Torver Beck. During this part of the walk we are afforded fine views of Coniston water. In due course we arrive at Torver Beck having completed all our climbing for the day. We now commence our descent, initially along the side of Torver Beck eventually moving away from the Beck to emerge once again on the A593 at Little Arrow.
A short walk along the disused railway takes us to the path that leads through Torver Common Wood and down to Coniston Water. Our walk continues alongside the lake, eventually returning to the finish at Coniston.